Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Position Cut by Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund trimmed its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 77.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 86,718 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 303,165 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $76,877,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.3% during the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,719 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,655,000 after purchasing an additional 1,408 shares in the last quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 38.1% during the first quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC now owns 997 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 13.1% during the first quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 16,706 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $13,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares in the last quarter. Vima LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.3% during the first quarter. Vima LLC now owns 558 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $409,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.8% in the first quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 21,782 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $15,958,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total transaction of $3,921,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares in the company, valued at $9,091,512.30. The trade was a 30.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,514,232. This trade represents a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,016 shares of company stock worth $9,826,115. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $880.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $980.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price target on the stock. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $908.81.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $971.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $430.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.63, a P/E/G ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $582.83 and a 52-week high of $976.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $903.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $868.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.86 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.00%.

About Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, China, Spain, France, Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden. The company offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.